1. Technical Field
The present disclosure relates to a surgical apparatus for use during minimally invasive surgical procedures such as endoscopic or laparoscopic procedures. More particularly, the present disclosure relates to a penetrating system for accessing a body cavity.
2. Background of the Related Art
Minimally invasive surgical procedures, including endoscopic and laparoscopic procedures, permit surgery to be performed on organs, tissue, and vessels far removed from an opening within the tissue. Laparoscopic procedures are performed in the interior of the abdomen through a small incision such as, for example, a narrow endoscopic tube or cannula inserted through a small entrance incision in the skin. Typically, after the abdominal cavity is insufflated, a trocar is used to puncture the cavity wall, i.e., the peritoneal lining, to create a pathway to the underlying surgical site. Generally, the trocar includes a stylet or obturator having a sharp tip for penetrating the body cavity, which is positioned coaxially within an outer cannula. After penetrating the body tissue with the obturator, the surgeon may remove and leave the outer cannula in place for reception of instrumentation. Surgical instruments can then be introduced into the cannula to perform a surgical procedure. An example of a known trocar is described in commonly assigned U.S. Pat. No. 6,319,266 to Stellon, which issued Nov. 21, 2001, the contents of which are incorporated herein in its entirety by reference.